Count that carbon

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a significant effort that requires a great deal of planning and implementation, but tracking and reporting this reduction is a whole other process that many California companies are now being required to do. Two thousand and nine marks the first year of required emissions reporting under California’s groundbreaking Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32), part of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. The Act’s goal is an emissions reduction of 25% over the 30 year period from 1990 to 2020, and then in 2050 a reduction to 80% below 1990 levels, thus making 1990 the baseline year for companies to base their progress on. The March 2009 issue of Pollution Engineering featured an article written by Patrick Sullivan entitled “Getting Ready to Count Carbon,” which outlined some of the issues that companies who must establish their 1990 baseline are facing and offers some insight into just how important an effective and accurate emissions tracking and reporting system is, especially as California’s model is being looked at as a template for other states.

Establishing credible and accurate numbers for emissions reporting is imperative to companies finding success in achieving the goals set forth by AB 32. Mr. Sullivan discusses how many companies are facing challenges as they try to go back to 1990 and piece together information from multiple sources to establish their baseline emissions numbers. The lack of an accurate tracking system has caused many companies much frustration and likely a set of inaccurate data which will ultimately affect their progress and compliance with AB 32. As Mr. Sullivan states, “When getting into the planning mode for the baseline audit, companies should begin to think about how they can better centralize their reporting systems to make it easier for the future. Record keeping will be critical to compliance. The key now is to get to the heart of the data, get a sense of the company’s processes, and evaluate how real the data are.”

As Mr. Sullivan suggests, accurate record keeping and organization-wide reporting will be key to determining an organization’s ability to comply with these new regulations. A web-based greenhouse gas tracking & reporting system, like the one Intelex offers, is an ideal way to achieve compliance for several reasons. First, a web-based system requires minimal implementation and is easily accessed by any approved user with access to an Internet connection. Secondly, being web-based allows for organizations to easily track data across multiple locations; thus providing a 360-degree picture of the entire company’s emissions performance. Lastly, Intelex’s web-based GHG Systems include a comprehensive reporting suite, allowing managers access to real-time data at any point. With California setting the bar for the future of emissions tracking, there is no doubt that more US states and other countries will not be far behind. The simplicity of implementation, ease of use and range of features that Intelex’s web-based GHG System offers make it a smart and effective choice for any company looking to invest in their own future and that of the environment.

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